Oklahoma Head Coach Jeff Capel
“I think a lot of our guys grew up today. This certainly was not a pretty game. To win on the road and only shot 34% isn’t good. But one of the things that we did do was show a lot of toughness.”
“We got off to a good start, then Utah made a huge run and took control of the game. But the way we ended the first half was really important for us because we were able to cut their lead to make it a six-point game by halftime. Then in the second half we were able to come out and get back in to our defense and make some things happen.”
Utah Head Coach Jim Boylen
“This was a disappointing loss. We had two tough starts on the halves. We missed too many free throws. I like my team and I like my athletes. We battled and we are getting better. Our defense is getting better with every minute.”
“We have to make our free throws in the big games and we have to make our shots. We missed too many threes.” “I feel that David [Foster] did a good job containing [Willie] Warren. Our defense pushes. Our guys are big and the other team has to go out and struggle with our size and length. I feel good about our center position on this team.”
“[Foster] is a great player. He fits in perfectly with the system. I was disappointed with his fourth foul. He has to play smarter in that situation. He needs to learn to sometimes let them get the two to avoid the foul. He is still learning. This is only his tenth game in the system and he’ll keep getting better.”
“I will never blame a loss on a young team. Yes, we have a young team, but I will not use that as an excuse for a loss.”
Senior Guard Luka Drca
“The difference in the game was our offense. Our defense was pretty good, I think we held them to 34 % shooting, but our offense was not as good as it should be. When we were up four in overtime we took bad shots and we shouldn’t allow that to happen.”
“We have a young team and we are becoming closer to how we were last season. We wouldn’t have lost a close game like this. It’s been tough this season due to how many younger guys we have on the team, but the juniors and seniors need to work hard and lead the team.”
Junior Forward Jay Watkins
“Our shots that fell in the first half didn’t in the second. A couple guys’ shots that we normally could make just didn’t fall. We missed some crucial rebounds on defense that could have made the difference in this game.”
“This may have been the most disappointing loss in my career. It was heartbreaking.”
Junior Guard Carlon Brown
“I thought we were in the game the whole time. We let go of that lead in the first half and came out slow and sluggish in the second. We didn’t make free throws, myself included, and missed some important rebounds.”
“It’s been a rollercoaster year so far. A lot of learning and teaching has been going on. We have to keep our heads high after this game and learn a lot from it and apply it to practice. As of right now, we are not ready for conference play. We have one of the toughest conferences in the nation and it gets harder through the season and we have to get better.”
